ernie f

[David M]

Thanks, ernie. Will PM you nearer the time.

[ernie f]

Went to my other 'go-to' location for Adonis blues the other day but no success I am afraid. Never mind though because I did see this pair of Chalkhills getting 'down and dirty' down on the dirt so to speak.

[ernie f]

And overnight...

A Brimstone Moth got inside our house. Not the living room this time. It was on the floor of the hallway. Took a few pics before managing to shoo it outside.

[Wurzel]

Cracking view of the Chalkhills Ernie I've only just started seeing the odd Adonis on the Evil Book of Face Ernie so fingers crossed they're just a little delayed

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Went to my other 'go-to' location for Adonis blues the other day but no success I am afraid....

This species is especially late this year, ernie.

Perhaps the bonus will be that they'll eke their way into October this autumn, and provide a bit of additional bright colour when things are otherwise winding down.

[ernie f]

Well I have good news. I went to my local patch once again in search of Adonis Blues and found three. All three were on the worn side so must have been flying a while already. When I hadn't seen them last time I guess they must have been there but I was just not looking hard enough. I was over the moon because I saw absolutely no second brood Adonis here last year and was beginning to think the second brood just did not fly here.

But they do!

Being a bit on the older side they were not as brilliantly metallic looking as I am used to and indeed I had to look again and again under different lighting conditions and directions to make sure I was not getting confused with Common Blues which were also flying here at the same time. That meant bending right down next to each one and moving my line of sight from side to side to see the wings change colour from a greenish tint, through blue to almost purple. Luckily they were generally quite amenable and stayed long enough in one spot with their wings open for me to do this. Of course they did have the black marks crossing the white fringe around the wings but then so do the Chalkhills which were also flying here, but they clearly were not Chalkhills.

Also saw a few Brown Argus which were just starting up. Large White, Small Skip, Small Heath, Red Admiral, Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper. Not a bad little haul for one hours tramp across a very small reserve.

[ernie f]

Today I spent a short while at my other Adonis Blue site and saw three males and one female. So again this site has both broods I am pleased to say. Not many individuals but the population appears to be stable.

When I observed this species in Hampshire at this time in previous years I would regularly see examples of brilliant blue, on occasion tinged purple or bright green. Here though all the examples I have seen this week at my two sites in Gloucestershire have a greater tendency to show purple and dark green hues, particularly purple on the fore-wings. I have no idea why, or even if it is a 'thing' because I haven't really observed them for enough years here to make a judgement but it certainly appears that way. Could it be simply that they are further north? This is one of the most northerly spots in Britain for them I believe. Or could it be that the bedrock here is limestone and the bedrock in Hampshire is chalk? Maybe its just a minor local mutation in the ones around here. I don't know.

A bluer example in shade.

The more common Hampshire 'look'.

I know its a bit subtle, but it is more obvious in the field and took me a while to get used to.

[trevor]

Very nice Adonis, Ernie. I always look forward to both broods.

[ernie f]

I've not posted for awhile because I have not seen a lot in the Butterfly realm but did see this moth earlier this evening before the sun set fully. It was perched on my house outside window at the back near the woods. A Common Marbled Carpet I think.

[Wurzel]

Interesting to see the Adonis Ernie (great shots )and hear your ideas about regional colour variation...could be the case. I for one have noticed that the spring brood seems to have more of paler blue, almost pastel in a certain light males and in the summer they take on a darker hue, more electric blue...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

Hi, all

I'm back with my first post of the year from the South Cotswolds.

A good day, today at one of my favorite local haunts. If you remember, last year I mentioned I would not give out details as to specific locations on this post but if you post regularly on this site and want to know more, just send me a private message. Thanks.

But here is a picture of the 'local haunt'...

I saw the following...

3 Small Heath
1 L White
1 S White
1 Brimstone
2 Speckled Wood
2 Mint Moth
1 Mother Shipton Moth
21 Dingy Skipper
1 Duke
Plus a pair of Stonechat and plenty of Skylarks

Not at all bad.

Deer Diary

Last week we had a pair of Roe Deer visit our back garden at the same time. I was spotted but it did not concern them much.

Competition Time

Here are two things I have seen in the Southern Cotswold District in the last week or so. They can be seen on the same day although the timing overlap is slim.

One is this fine butterfly

And here is a beautiful flower

And here is your question...

Which is the Fritillary?

First person to answer correctly wins a pat on the back!

[Wurzel]

"Which is the Fritillary?"...the bottom one The local haunt/patch looks very much like Noar Hill Ernie - no wonder there are Dukes there Cracking photo too!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

Wurzel

A pat on the back is winging its way to you as we speak!

[ernie f]

Another day, another local nature reserve. This one has a lot of people visit very soon but out of that 'special butterfly' season you don't see many people. I went there because I came across a Grizzled Skipper there last year and wasn't expecting to. I was kind of expecting to this time, but I didn't see one. Such is life.

Did see 12 Dingies and a Greenstreak though.

But the best moment was when I came across a pair of Dingies making next year's Dingies.

Deer Diary

I get up early in the mornings. A habit ingrained in me after years of having a long commute to work. Thankfully those days are over now I am retired but I still get to see a lot of sunrises!

However, another thing that is good about being up before dawn is from time to time I see wildlife in my garden that I might not otherwise have seen.

Yesterday I posted that about a week ago I saw a pair of Roe deer in my back garden during the daytime and yet again, today I thought I saw this pair again, but in the semi-darkness before sun-up I was wrong. All I could see at first was movement, then as my eyes adjusted to the low light the obvious white rump of a Roe came into view as it turned away from me to munch at our hedge.

But something was not quite right. First of all I realised the other one was very much smaller. Strange I thought – I didn’t think Roes had their young in April. Then I noticed it didn’t have a white rump. Not only that, if it were an early baby Roe, then why was it roaming around the back garden detached from it’s mum. It appeared to be very independent. Then it struck me. It was an adult Muntjac!

Now I have seen Muntjac in my back garden before, I think three times since we have lived here and we have been here two years now, so they are not a common sight. But I had never been able to get a picture because they always saw me and fled before I even managed to get my camera.

Today was different. I knew it was too dark to get a conventional photo so set my camera to it’s night-time setting and clicked away over and again, hoping what I was taking didn’t end up a blurred mess.

Well I am pleased to report that I did manage to get a couple of OK shots – a bit blurred but with some post-processing, not so blurred you couldn’t confirm it was indeed a Munjac.

This was the first time anywhere I have seen a Roe and Munjac together in such close proximity, almost with a ‘herding’ tendency.

[Wurzel]

Cheers for the pat Ernie Lovely shots of the Dingies in cop and that Muntjac is a funny looking thing

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

Wurzel

Glad you enjoyed the pat!

The Munjac is about the size of a Labrador dog and has a very hunched appearance. This one didn't have antlers so I guess it was a female.

All the best

[ernie f]

Rodborough Common is huge so I don't mind saying today's trip was there. Well I say 'trip' but actually I live there so this was walking distance from my house!

A couple of years ago I think it was David who informed me where to look on this common for Dukes. I looked last year and the year before without success but they must have been there because today I saw two at the location he advised. This is great because it means I now have two Duke sites, both close to me.

There was also three Greenstreaks zooming around each other. No pics because they were just too zingy.

Also a single Dingy and a couple of Specklies.

[Wurzel]

Really like the stained glass Duke shot Ernie It must be great to live so close to such a great butterfly site

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

I always try to get a shot like that if at all possible. Usually we don't get such great opportunities as we have over the last few hot, sunny days.

[ernie f]

So with the idea that the heat may have advanced some species a little in their flying calendar I was hopeful that my local Pearl site might sport one or two. Last year at peak I counted 14 in total, flitting about the place between the entrance gate and the bench. Given that there are so few actual habitat opportunities for them in this woodland, I thought 14 was pretty good. David paid a visit the day after me last year and got a count of 15. He beat me!

So I paid a visit on the 1st of May this year, on the hottest day of the year so far and what do I find? In that same space, a total of 19! Now I am not suggesting for one minute there is a competition going on. Huh. Who am I trying to kid? I bet he comes along tomorrow and counts 20!

Joking aside, there must be quite a lot of mileage in this species here this year so the numbers may well climb higher. I look forward to finding out and shall report back.

So being on a roll as it were I decided to go down the road to my Marshie site, full of optimism and some might say misplaced bravado because surely it was too early. I scoured the reserve without success - not a Marshie in sight. Oh, well at least I had my thrill with the Pearls. I got back to the entrance gate of the reserve and was just about to leave when I saw an orangey thing flit by. It looked to be a more intense colour than the Small Heaths I had been seeing so I went in for a closer look and found it sitting on a bluebell. My first Marshie of the year. Hooray!